The spotlight was certainly on Scurry and she failed to come through her first test, flapping hopelessly at a free-kick punted into the box, only to be let off the hook when Elaine blazed over from six yards.

But when Brazil did take a surprise lead, there was not much Scurry could have done about it.

Formiga swung a corner in from the left and Osbourne, hesitating over how to clear her lines, unfathomably stooped to head the ball into her own net.

If Scurry was blameless for the first, she could - and perhaps should - have done something about the second goal.

Marta collected the ball and cut in from the right and drilled a shot towards the bottom corner, Scurry getting down to her near post but failing to get sufficient contact on the ball to prevent it going in.

By first-half stoppage time, USA's hopes lay in tatters. Boxx was ludicrously adjudged to have fouled Christiane and she was sent off for her second booking.

The second half was as one-sided as you could imagine the semi-finals of a World Cup to be.